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Labelas Enoreth
The Lifegiver, Lord of the Continuum, the One-Eyed God, the Philosopher, the Sage at Sunset Symbol: Setting sun or a stylized hourglass Home Plane: Arvandor Alignment: Chaotic Good Portfolio: Time, longevity, the moment of choice, history Worshipers: Bards, divine disciples, elves, loremasters, scholars, teachers Cleric Alignments: CG, CN, NG Domains: Death, Knowledge Weapon: “The Timestaff” (quarterstaff) ALIASES: Chronos, Karonis, Kronus, the Simbul SUPERIOR: Corellon Larethian ALLIES: Deneir, Cyrrollalee, Eilistraee, Milil, Mystra, Null, Oghma, Savras, Shekinester, the Seldarine FOES: Myrkul, Orcus, Yeenoghu, Velsharoon, the Drow Pantheon (except Eilistraee) labelas.gif or Labelas_-_Gallifrey.gif Labelas Enoreth (LAH-bay-lahs EHN-or-eth) is the elven god of longevity and time. At the creation of the Fair Folk, Labelas blessed the elves with long lifespans and decreed that their appearances would not be marked by the passage of time. The Lifegiver cooperates with Sehanine in overseeing the lifespan of elves and their growth away from and beyond mortal realms. He measures the lives of the Fair Folk and decrees when they should be ended, allowing passage to Arvandor. As Lord of the Continuum, Labelas governs the orderly passage of time and guards against those who would alter the path of history. Labelas confers wisdom and teachings on young and old alike, and although he is rarely invoked, the Lifegiver is often praised. The Lifegiver knows the future and past of every elf, faerie, or sylvan creature. Labelas is worshiped by sages, historians, philosophers, librarians, and all those who measure the changes wrought by the passing of years. Labelas has also been venerated in other guises at various places and times in history. When the Sy-Tel’Quessir settled the Yuirwood, the Seldarine merged with the ancient gods of the Yuir, transforming them into aspects of the various powers of the elven pantheon. The Simbul was the Yuir goddess of the moment of choice, the edge, the space between the now and the future, what is and is not, the power of balance embodied in the point of decision where fate is determined intuitively without reason or knowledge. When the Seldarine and the Yuir elven deities merged, the Simbul had to choose between Labelas Enoreth (the Seldarine power of time and philosophy) and Erevan Ilesere (the elven god of change) to ally with, and eventually she became an aspect of Labelas and then faded into near oblivion. Even the Cha-Tel’Quessir of the Yuirwood have long forgotten this goddess, and the Simbul, Queen of Aglarond, only discovered the divine ancestry of her name in the Year of the Banner (1368 DR). Likewise, along forgotten-aspect of Labelas, known as Chronos, Karonis, or Kronus, was worshiped centuries ago in the tiny realm of Orva, now sunk beneath the waters of the Vast Swamp of eastern Cormyr. Labelas gets on well with the rest of the Seldarine, although his relationship with Erevan Ilesere is sorely tested by the other’s antics on occasion, but the Lifegiver makes allies of few other powers. In ancient times, when Mystryl was venerated as the human goddess of time, Labelas was closely allied with the Lady of Mysteries, and that close relationship has continued with the current incarnation of Mystra. Labelas and the Guardian of the Lost, an aspect of the draconic deity Null also known as Chronepsis, have an understanding, and it is said that Labelas and Shekinester, Queen of the Nagas, are slowly building an alliance. Since the Time of Troubles, Clangeddin Silverbeard, dwarven god of battle and war, has nursed a grudge against Labelas for defeating him in battle on the isle of Ruathym. While the Lifegiver has attempted to apologize for his actions, the Father of Battle is slow to forgive, as is typical of the Stout Folk. Some ancient elven myths place Labelas as the father of Corellon and Sehanine, and place Labelas at the head of the Seldarine before the Dawn Cataclysm. They say that during that battle of the Gods, Labelas ceded his throne to his son and has allowed Corellon to rule the Seldarine ever since. The Lifegiver strongly opposes the powers of entropy and undeath, particularly Orcus and Yeenoghu. Labelas is also a philosopher-god, a patient teacher and instructor. His demeanor is calm and meditative, and he is not given to sudden action or hasty speech. According to legend, he traded an eye for the ability to peer through time. Labelas concerns himself with transgenerational changes and the growth of learning and wisdom among elves, and thus rarely involves himself directly in the lives of individuals. Vartan Hai Sylvar is a gold elf who served as the avatar of Labelas during the Time of Troubles. While in mortal form, Labelas inflicted a great deal of pain and destruction on the isle of Ruathym and Vartan’s companions, the crew of the Realms Master, causing Vartan to reject his god for a time. Eventually, Labelas and Vartan reconciled, but not before the gold elf had taught his deity a great deal about the proper exercise of his power and value of trust and friendship. The Chosen of Labelas has served for a brief period as Vartan’s proxy in the plane of Arvandor, but he has left that service to return to the Realms. He continues to serve his god, and both god and elf have grown from this relationship. The Church The church of Labelas has a small, but dedicated, following in most elven cultures, and its teachings are widely heralded throughout the realms of the Tel’Quessir. The counsel of the Lifegiver’s priests is always sought when far-reaching decisions must be made. Although Labelas is venerated by members of all the elven subraces, the Ar-Tel’Quessir in particular revere the Lifegiver and follow the teachings of his clergy for the philosophical nature and farseeing perspective of both the god and his priests is in close harmony with their natural perspective on the course of life. The faithful of Labelas are on good terms with the cult of Hanali Celanil, for the followers of the Heart of Gold give thanks to the Lifegiver for preserving the beauty that Lady Goldheart bequeaths. Temples of the Lifegiver are monuments unbowed by the passage of time, whether they be built amidst the branches of a venerable forest giant or constructed from weathered stone carved from the slopes of an ancient mountain range. The central chapel of each temple is dominated by a massive golden sundial inlaid in the floor, and windows are placed or limbs trimmed back so as to allow the direct rays of the setting sun to bathe the massive time pieces in colorful hues. Each house of worship has a library of some sort associated with it, and many such temples house some of the greatest collections of elven lore assembled in the Realms. Novices of Labelas are known as Tyros. Full priests of the Lifegiver are known as Time Sentinels. In ascending order of rank, the titles used by Labelasan priests are Observer, Recorder, Librarian, Lorist, Scholar, Historian, Sage, and Philosopher. High-ranking priests have unique individual titles but are collectively known as the Wizened Specialty priests are known as chronologians. Dogma The march of time is inexorable, but the blessings of the Lifegiver enable the children of Corellon to live long and fruitful lives, unmarked by the passage of years. Record and preserve the lessons of history, and draw lessons from that which has unfolded. In the end, the sun always sets before the next day dawns anew. When you follow Labelas’s teachings, time is on your side. Day-to-Day Activities Priests of Labelas are the keepers of elven history and lore, and they are charged with searching for hidden facts of the past. They compile and protect such sacred knowledge and record it for the instruction of future generations. Members of Labelas’s clergy are also philosophers and teachers, responsible for educating the young and promoting and acquiring knowledge. Holy Days/Important Ceremonies The faithful of Labelas do not celebrate individual holy days, for the passage of time is uniform, independent of the events that unfold in each regular interval. Instead, the Lifegiver’s followers gather each day in small groves near his temples as the sun sets to mark the passage of another day, a daily ritual known as the Marking of Time. They utter prayers to Labelas and recite all that they have learned in the past day to be recorded by the lorekeepers of Arvandor who serve the One-Eyed God. It is considered a great honor if a priest of Labelas attends a birth, as it is a sign that the child will live a long and fruitful life. Such visitations always occur at the first sunset after the birth and involve casting a bless spell on the infant as prayers to Labelas are exclaimed to the heavens. A priest of the Lifegiver does not perform such a ceremony unless she or he receives a vision in advance from the god giving such instructions. Major Centers of Worship The ruins of the elven city of Mhnlamniir lay at the heart of the High Forest, less than two days’ travel from the west end of the Old Road and three days’ travel east from the Lost Peaks. At the height of Eaerlann’s civilization, Mhiilamniir was the site of a number of major temples and seats of power for elven clergies in the North. While Mhiilamniir’s largest building is a now-ruined temple dedicated to Corellon Larethian, the city’s oldest temple has always been the Temple Beyond Time, a soaring tower shaped like an elongated hourglass consecrated in the name of the Lifegiver. Labelasan religious texts suggest that the Temple Beyond Time existed as far back as the early days of Aryvandaar, nearly 25 millennia ago. Mhiilamnnr is no longer safe enough for elven pilgrims to visit due to the tenancy of a rabidly paranoid green dragon, Choloracndara, who lairs in Corellon’s ruined house of worship and claims the entire temple city and its environs as her domain. Nonetheless, Labelas’s temple and its inhabitants survive unmolested due in part to the temple’s peculiar relationship with the time stream. The Temple Beyond Time can be seen or entered for a few moments at widely varying intervals. The only permanent inhabitants of the Temple Beyond Time are a trio of Siluvanedenn baelnom, known collectively as the Timespinners: Susklahava Orbryn, Roan-mara Neirdre, and Phantyni Evanara. In life, each of the Timespinners was a gold elven priestess of Labelas, and they have served the Lifegiver for millennia as historians, sages, and oracles. The faithful of the Lifegiver interpret the god’s omens as to when the Temple Beyond Time can be reached and then travel to the site in order to consult with the eternal seers who dwell within. Those petitioners who enter the tower bear the risk that when they emerge many years may have passed, even though the interval seemed like little more than a few hours to those within. The dark, calm waters of Lake Eredruie, a large pond at the headwaters of the Glaemril in the forests of northwestern Deepingdale, have long been held to be sacred to Labelas by the Fair Folk. Elves who immerse themselves in the lake’s waters can add years to their lifespan, although the magic or the waters works only once A flask of Lake Eredruie water acts as a potion of healing on elves and half-elves only, but loses its potency if mixed with any other liquid or substance. The Teu-Tel’Quessir of the neighboring village of Velethuil, known to humans as Bristar, have long venerated the Lifegiver at the Treespnng of Eredruie, a natural spring that bubbles forth from a hollow in the upper trunk of a hiexel and runs down the side of the tree to feed the neighboring Lake Eredruie The Treespnng is tended by an aged moon elf, Sorsasta Fernsong, rumored to have enchanted numerous elixirs of health, elixirs of youth, and potions of longevity from the potent waters. Affiliated Orders The Order of the Setting Sun is a fellowship of elf and half-elf archeologists, bards, historians, lorekeepers, scholars, sages, and the like who seek to preserve and/or rediscover the relics and knowledge of elven cultures that have passed into history. The Knights Paradoxical are an elite order of warriors, wizards, and priests who seek to preserve the integrity of the time stream and prevent significant alterations to history by chronomancers and their ilk. Members of this ancient order may be found guarding legendary time gates and tracking down copies of time conduit spells (as detailed in the various Arcane Age products) to keep them out of the hands of those who would meddle with history either deliberately or through carelessness. Priestly Vestments Priests of Labelas wear light gray robes of wispy, gossamer construction. When a small light source is viewed through the robes, such vestments shine with the deep reds, purples, and oranges of the sunset. The holy symbol of the faith is a semicircular gold disk carved to resemble the setting sun. Adventuring Garb: Servants of Labelas eschew heavy armor or sophisticated weaponry. For most priests of the Lifegiver, simple light gray robes (of more durable construction than their ceremonial vestments) and a staff or dagger serve as adequate protection. When available, elven cloaks, elven boots, and other items that allow the wearer to pass unnoticed are employed by members of Labelas’s clergy. Category:Intermediate deities Category:Seldarine